The Delaware and Raritan Canal

Delaware and Raritan Canal

Delaware & Raritan Canal State Park

Once, if you wanted to ship anthracite from the coal region of Northeast Pennsylvania to New York City, you first had it brought overland to Philadelphia, then you put it on a ship which sailed down through the Delaware Bay. When the ship reached Cape May it made a sharp left and sailed up the New Jersey coast to New York Harbor. This was not the most direct path, but the only practical way to move large quantities of goods in those days was via water routes.

The solution was to have ships from Philadelphia navigate the Delaware River upstream to Bordentown NJ (a couple of miles south of Trenton), continue towards the northeast until they reached New Brunswick NJ, and then continue down the Raritan River to the point where it empties into Raritan Bay, which is directly beneath the southern tip of Staten Island.

Still missing from this recipe is water – in order for ships to pass smoothly through a canal there needs to be water in the canal! The solution was to build a Feeder Canal, which brought water from a point on the Delaware River 22 miles upstream called Bull’s Island (near Frenchtown, NJ) down to the start of the Main Canal at Bordentown.

The Delaware and Raritan Canal was completed in 1834, and the first canal boats and barges were pulled by mule teams! Steam-powered ships were only introduced on the canal a decade later. Locks were used to compensate for elevation differences along the canal. Many of those locks are still present, however the upstream lock gates have been replaced by small dams and water outfalls, and the downstream gates have been removed.

The canal’s peak years were in the 1860s and 1870s – during that period 80% of the total cargo carried was Pennsylvania coal destined to feed New York City’s industrial boom. By the end of the 19th century canal use was in decline throughout the country, thanks to the speed and energy efficiency of railroad transportation. The Delaware and Raritan Canal stayed open through the 1932 shipping season, after which the State of New Jersey rehabilitated it to serve as a water supply system – a purpose it has continued to serve to this day.

A dam has replaced the upstream gates at Griggstown Lock, and the downstream gate has been removed entirely. The third photo shows the lock tender’s house.

About seven-tenths of a mile north of the Lock is the Griggstown Causeway, where a swing bridge crossed the canal. After the canal was closed the swing bridges were dismantled, and replaced where necessary. Next are the bridge tender’s house and station, located across the causeway from one another on the eastern bank. The bridge tender would open and close the swing bridge as ships passed by. This station was equipped with a Morse telegraph machine; one of the earliest uses of the technology. Incidentally, one of the earliest uses of the telephone was by railroad operators!

On the western bank is the Long House (top photo) and a small home constructed in the early 1950s on top of an old grist mill’s stone foundation (second photo). No one really seems to know what the Long House was used for, although the fact that it was known locally as the Mule Tenders Barracks might help. Possible functions include a grain storage facility and living space for mill hands, canal builders, and canal workers.

When Hurricane Floyd blew through New Jersey in September, 1999, a number of towns along the D&R Canal were inundated and many sites along the way were devastated, among them the Mule Tenders Barracks. The building suffered major damage as flood waters covered the entire first floor. That fall the building was closed and remains closed, although extensive renovation work is currently being performed. Plans are for the building to be reopened some time in 2010.

Built at the same time as the canal, the masonry and stone Blackwells Mills Canal House was the home of the bridge tender at Blackwells Mills. It’s on the eastern bank of the canal, and the bridge tender’s station is on the opposite side of the road. The next couple of photos show the view from the Canal House, first downstream then upstream. The Blackwells Mills Canal House is now used for occasional craft and antique shows, art exhibits and the like.